ᐅ Insulated drywall enclosure for controlled residential ventilation unit in the attic
Created on: 25 Mar 2020 19:01
A
annab377
Hello everyone,
I have two questions regarding the following proposal from our architect:
We are planning a two-story house with a pitched roof and a basement. He recommends installing the central mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery in the attic (this avoids breaking through the basement wall and having a "little tower" in the garden). However, the attic is intended to be outside the thermal envelope (insulation will be added on top of the concrete ceiling of the first floor). Since the attic can get quite cold without insulation, and according to him the ventilation system does not work well in rooms colder than 10°C (50°F), we are advised to build an insulated small room for the ventilation system on one gable wall inside a drywall structure attached to the masonry Poroton 49cm (19 inch) wall.
Question 1): Should I choose the gable side that is not above the kitchen on the ground floor with the exhaust hood, or do kitchen odors dissipate well enough over two floors so that you don’t end up pulling kitchen air into the ventilation unit in the gable?
Question 2): Are there any experiences with this approach of having an insulated small room? It seems the insulation on top of the ceiling would be left out in this area to allow heat from the first floor to rise into the small room. Is that sufficient to keep the insulated space warm enough just from the heat of the rooms below?
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Best regards
I have two questions regarding the following proposal from our architect:
We are planning a two-story house with a pitched roof and a basement. He recommends installing the central mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery in the attic (this avoids breaking through the basement wall and having a "little tower" in the garden). However, the attic is intended to be outside the thermal envelope (insulation will be added on top of the concrete ceiling of the first floor). Since the attic can get quite cold without insulation, and according to him the ventilation system does not work well in rooms colder than 10°C (50°F), we are advised to build an insulated small room for the ventilation system on one gable wall inside a drywall structure attached to the masonry Poroton 49cm (19 inch) wall.
Question 1): Should I choose the gable side that is not above the kitchen on the ground floor with the exhaust hood, or do kitchen odors dissipate well enough over two floors so that you don’t end up pulling kitchen air into the ventilation unit in the gable?
Question 2): Are there any experiences with this approach of having an insulated small room? It seems the insulation on top of the ceiling would be left out in this area to allow heat from the first floor to rise into the small room. Is that sufficient to keep the insulated space warm enough just from the heat of the rooms below?
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Best regards
annab377 schrieb:
No, unfortunately the house is not here in its entirety.Not even as a design discussion? — that's a pity. Am I correct in my assumption about the building’s shape?https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Exactly. Two stories (without knee walls) and a gable roof with about 1.5 m (5 feet) attic height. The exterior dimensions of the building are 10 x 12 m (33 x 39 feet). On the east gable side (the ridge runs almost parallel to the east-west axis), I had planned to install the mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system.
However, the kitchen with the planned exhaust hood is also on the east side on the ground floor. But due to the difference in height, this should not be a problem, and I assume the cooking air will not be drawn into the mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system, right?
However, the kitchen with the planned exhaust hood is also on the east side on the ground floor. But due to the difference in height, this should not be a problem, and I assume the cooking air will not be drawn into the mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system, right?
It is not a problem to install everything in an insulated small room. However, certain precautions need to be taken. Either a fresh air intake and an exhaust duct must be present in the small room, or a frost guard must be installed that activates as soon as temperatures become critical.
In any case, no pipes should be left uninsulated in the attic. They must either be routed entirely into the small room or properly insulated.
In any case, no pipes should be left uninsulated in the attic. They must either be routed entirely into the small room or properly insulated.
Golfi90 schrieb:
Either a supply air and exhaust air duct must also be installed inside the small chamber, or you install a frost guard that activates as soon as temperatures become critical.
In any case, no pipes are allowed to lie uninsulated in the attic. They must either all be routed inside the chamber or insulated accordingly. Thank you for your reply. What do you mean exactly by having the supply air and exhaust air duct inside the small chamber? The supply and exhaust air ducts are routed through the exterior wall (gable), and the mechanical ventilation unit is right behind that wall.
In theory, the pipes could also be laid outside the chamber on the attic floor, but they would then need to be insulated within the drywall construction. That shouldn’t be a major effort. Do you know anyone who has done this and documented it online?
annab377 schrieb:
However, the kitchen with the planned ducted exhaust hood is also on the east side on the ground floor. But because of the height difference, this shouldn’t be an issue, and I won’t be pulling cooking air into the mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, right?Are you planning the mechanical ventilation without heat recovery? Golfi90 schrieb:
It’s not a problem to install everything in an insulated utility room.Maybe you could show your plans? If I remember correctly, you rearranged things in the same way the original poster is asking about now.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Yes
Yes, that method works. You simply run the outdoor air intake and exhaust ducts through the roof. A minimum distance of 2 meters (6.6 feet) between the two must be maintained.
annab377 schrieb:
Is it possible to quickly conceal the ducts of the mechanical ventilation system within the concrete ceiling? It is insulated from above with an overlay insulation.
The small room can be about 2 meters (6.6 feet) wide, 2 meters (6.6 feet) deep, and 2 meters (6.6 feet) high. And then route the ducts inside the chamber down into the concrete floor?
Yes, that method works. You simply run the outdoor air intake and exhaust ducts through the roof. A minimum distance of 2 meters (6.6 feet) between the two must be maintained.
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